I'll be right back (in 24 years)
by Ana.K.Lee
Summary: When Derek had thought about time travel – and he had, a lot – this was not what he had in mind.
1. Prologue

Prologue

When Derek had thought about time travel – and he had, a lot – this was not what he had in mind. He thought about seeing his younger self, telling him to leave Paige alone and NEVER trust Kate Argent. He though he'll get to come back once that was done and everything would be perfect. He never imagined having to relive his entire life.

The witch was supposed to be easy to deal with. She wasn't hurting anyone really but the sheriff was starting to be concerned about all the "odd" events going on; a cheating husband being incapable – literally – to put pants on; an evil boss handing himself over for fraud and then denying it; school bullies becoming their victim's slaves, willingly. All those things could be considered justified but people were asking questions so John asked Derek and his pack to look into it.

A few days later, they finally found the witch. They tried to talk to her but Derek being … well Derek, he managed to piss her off rather quickly. He didn't see it coming, and before he knew it everything was black.

When he woke up he was in a giant crib. At least that's what he thought until he realized that the crib wasn't big; it was his body that was tiny. He couldn't even lift his own head so he was probably very VERY young; which is probably why he started to cry uncontrollably.


	2. Chapter 1: the first year

Chapter 1

It didn't take long for Derek to realize that being a baby sucked. Sure when his mom came into his nursery to rock him back to sleep, it had felt like a dream… And then he woke up with a dirty diaper. Obviously, since he was "technically" a baby, there was nothing to be ashamed of… as a 24 year old, this was hell. He apparently had no control over his own body other than making some very ridiculous baby noises and maybe a few (probably unrecognizable) expressions. His mother came back and immediately put him on the changing table. "God you stink Der-bear." She said while looking down at him lovingly. _Thanks mom, rub it in why don't you… _For his own sanity, Derek decided to close his eyes and go to his happy place until he was clean and dressed.

When that was done, she took him in her arms, keeping him close to her chest. In the kitchen they found his dad making pancakes while 5 year old Laura talked 10 year old Peter's ears off. Talia put him down in a sleeper on top off the table right next to Peter. She started to heat up a bottle for Derek and a good thing to because he was starving. In that instant he was very glad that his mom hated to breast feed. He remembered when Cora was a baby; he had asked her what that weird pump thingy was. And boy how he'd regretted it.

Everything was peaceful again until Peter decided to poke him in the stomach. "Why is he so quiet?" _Why are you such a brat? Leave me alone you idiot! _Sadly Derek's trademark stare didn't seem to be working at that age. Talia finally sat down next to her son with his food. She took him back in her arms before giving it to him. "I don't know… He looks okay though. Maybe he's just tired." She said. _No I'm not, don't you dare put me back in that crib_.

The day went on in a series of feeding, burping, changing and sleeping. When he woke up that night, starving so much it hurt, he decided to stay quiet. He was an adult, he could wait. He managed to fall asleep again only to wake up probably less than an hour later. His parents came, looking rather worried. They saw him lying there, awake and silent. They fed him and then put him back to bed, watching him until he fell asleep.

The next few days were pretty much the same. He ate, burped, got changed, watched the world around him and slept. He stayed silent, even when someone tried to play with him which consisted of making him hold one of their fingers in his hand. He continued to stay silent at night for 3 days until he realized that his silence was making his parents worry a lot. Then one morning, when he saw how worried and exhausted they were, he made the decision to at least pretend to be a kid. It was hard at first. His first attempt at crying in the middle of the night was quite pathetic. He sounded more annoyed then hungry but it did the trick. Thankfully he didn't have to cry to get changed; the smell was enough for every werewolf in the house to know he needed a new diaper. During the day though, it was rather easy. He never would have thought that being an infant was so much fun. He giggled, cooed and smiled (well tried to anyway) at everyone except Peter. Every time Peter touched him he screamed, when Peter talked to him he stared and the only time Peter tried to hold him he slapped him as hard as he could. It wasn't really hard, but the 10 year old got the message. _Fuck you Uncle Peter, I don't like you._

_… … … …_

A few months later, Derek felt like he was coming back to civilization. He could move around a little bit better (mostly just turn from his back to his front) and hold his head up, but most importantly he could babble. And it's awesome. Every time someone talks to him he can actually give them an answer. They don't get him most of the time, it's not like he can form words or anything, but he can communicate his emotion better; especially to Peter. Now the stares and hits (which were getting stronger) came with angry screams and babbled insults. Derek was pretty sure his first word will be "Asshole"; actually he'll probably make sure of it.

_… … … …_

Seven months after his arrival, Derek could finally crawl! Well sort of. Almost. Right now he was on his hands and knees, trying to move forward or backward but sadly being still. He probably looked ridiculous going back and forth without actually lifting any of his members but he could feel it: soon he would be able to move around.

_… … … …_

When he finally managed to stand while holding his dad's leg, he felt like partying. Sadly his improvised happy dance sent him back on his bottom. His eyes watered even if he wasn't sad or hurt, just really frustrated and his dad picked him up, kissing his forehead before holding him against his chest. "We should probably start child proofing everything" he said to Talia. _God I never thought I'd say that but I can't wait for puberty …_

_… … … …_

"A'ole" The silence that followed Derek's first real word was enough to know they understood no matter how bad it sounded. And Derek had never been prouder of himself. It was definitely worth his first time out.

_… … … …_

Derek's first birthday was one of the best days of his life, old and new. He was on his mom's lap, surrounded by the whole pack including his mom's other brother Jared who's studying law in UCLA and his grandmother on his father's side. He doesn't remember her from his old life but he can see now where his father got his "zen" attitude. He had opened his gifts with as much enthusiasm and dexterity a one year could. The toys looked nice even though he knew he'll only play with them if he has to pretend. And the cake, that he was now wearing, is delicious. He looked around at his family, his pack, and smiled. This time would be better; he'll make sure of it. This time, no one will die.


	3. Chapter 2: The second chance

Chapter 2

On what should have been Derek's 26th birthday (but was instead his 2nd), he finally managed to climb out of his crib by himself. Once on the floor, he felt like screaming "Freedoooom!" but only did it in his head since he had no way to explain how he knew that reference and the noise would wake everyone in the house. Now he was looking at the door thinking "_What the fuck do I do now?_" Because there was no way he could reach the door knob. He ended up sitting on the floor, waiting. When his mother arrived to take him to breakfast he was still sitting there like an idiot.

"I out!" He screamed to share his pride. _Look Mom, I'm old enough for a real bed now! Please…_ "I can see that but why did you get out of bed?" She looked slightly worried. "You could've hurt yourself!" Derek refused to listen to this. He was 26 years old; he should be allowed to get up early if he wanted to. He walked as fast as his little legs permitted it, trying to avoid his mom's arms when he walked by her. She looked amused and let him go while following him to make sure he wouldn't try the stairs alone.

_… … … …_

As usual Mr. Hale was making breakfast while Peter and Laura were already at the kitchen table, waiting. Derek was put in his highchair (which was as far away from Peter as possible since the mashed potatoes incident.) and a few minutes later he had a sippy cup with what smelled like apple juice. "Noooo" He dropped the sippy cup and looked up at his mom. _Apple juice? I don't like apple juice, I never liked apple juice! Why are you doing this to me? _"Derek! Careful! What's wrong with you today?" _What's wrong with ME? You're the one giving me apple juice. _"No juss!" _What happened to orange juice? Orange was fine. I want orange juice! _He tried to communicate through his eyes but all he got was an exasperated look from Talia. The puppy eyes didn't work either. "He's such a whiner…" _And you're such a dick_. He stared at his uncle, who was _probably responsible for the lack of orange juice, the jerk. _The 12 year old stared right back and the daily Derek and Peter stare contest started.

_… … … …_

It was a Thursday so Derek stayed home with his dad while Laura and Peter were at school and Talia was at work. They were watching cartoons, which had become Derek's favorite activity, when the phone rang. Mr. Hale left the room to answer and then came back with an angry look stuck on his face. He forced himself to smile when he told Derek they were going out for a bit. "Out!" Derek squealed eagerly. He wanted to ask where they were going but he hadn't mastered "Where" yet. Actually he couldn't say much more than "Out", "No", "Mama", "Dada" and "A'hole". He was starting to get worried but then his mom had always said that he had been a late bloomer speech wise.

_… … … …_

After 20 minutes in the car, and that was a very long time to be stuck in a car seat, they finally stopped in what looked like Beacon hills' middle school. _Oh :) Peter got in trouble…_ Derek found himself unable to stop smiling.

Derek was put in his stroller, even after protesting vehemently for 5 minutes. He wanted to start crying to make sure his dad understood how wrong this was but Peter would make fun of him. Speaking of which, they found him on one of the seats in front of the principal's office. There was also a teacher and 3 other boys. All 3 of them had bruises and one had a split lip. Mr. Hale took Peter aside and started whispering. Derek could hear them talking about what had happened. According to Peter, the 3 boys both started it and deserved it. He refused to say much more after that. They all waited until each boy had an authority figure with them before going into the office.

Derek already had a smirk ready for when Peter would get blamed; he had practiced it for days. "First of all, I'd like to say that violence, for any reason, is not tolerated in this school." _Oh you are so going to get grounded Uncle Peter_. "But bullying a student is unacceptable. Mr. Thomas saw those three boys insulting and pushing Mr. Hale in the hallway long before Mr. Hale through the first punch. It is understandable that anyone would feel the need to defend themselves when being attacked, and I do mean attacked because that's what it was, by 3 other students." _Oh_. "And this is not the first time your sons are caught tormenting other students, including Mr. Hale. I think, and Mr. Thomas agreed, that you three would benefice from a few hours of detention, every day for 2 weeks. Mr. Hale will have detention tomorrow as well for using violence instead of asking for a teacher's help." _Peter was bullied? I always thought he must have been the most popular guy in his school. _When he looked up at his uncle, Peter had his head down. Derek could see tears falling before being quickly wiped.

_… … … …_

The ride back was silent. Derek's dad looked like he wanted to say something but didn't know how. Peter wasn't crying anymore but he kept his head down. Derek never would have thought that his uncle had ever been bullied. They were werewolves, being popular at school was supposed to be easy for them. It had been for Derek. Maybe that's it… The thing that happened in Peter's life that made him the manipulative jerk Derek had always known. _I've been doing this all wrong…_

_… … … …_

When they got home, Derek wasted no time. He told his father "I play" before following Peter who had run to his room as soon as the car had stopped. His father would know he'd lied but maybe he'll have enough time to execute the "Save Peter Plan".

He got lucky; the door was ajar so he didn't have to beg at the door until Peter caved in. Instead he pushed the door and walked right in. Peter was sitting on the floor, his back leaning against his bed. The 12 year old didn't move or even looked up at the toddler.

Derek jumped forward; he stood on his uncle's lap to be able to put both of his arms around Peter's neck. They stayed in this position for a while until Derek couldn't stand anymore and fell backward. Peter caught him before siting him on his lap. "I thought you hated me." Derek's heart broke; he couldn't believe he had refused to give a second chance to his Uncle when he got his without asking. "I sowwy."


	4. Chapter 3: Boredom and hell

Chapter 3

Boredom is always dangerous; Derek had found that out when he met Stiles. Seriously, the guy went into a forest, at night, to look for half a dead body just for fun. And now Derek understood why. He was soon to be 3 and cartoons where fine but after 3 years of teddy bears and books with more pictures than words the tiny werewolf was starting to lose his mind. And that's how mission "Get a book" was born. First he thought about finding his way into his mom's office were his parent's books were but she had been working there a lot and the door was always closed anyway … not locked but he couldn't reach the doorknob. Then he thought about his parent's bedroom but the only books there are the ones they're currently reading and not only would they notice their disappearance, they would know it had been him because of their sense of smell. Same for Peter who had started to really become a werewolf when he reached puberty. So really there was only one place he could look for a book: Laura's room.

Laura never really liked books, at least not then, but he knew she had one somewhere. He remembered that day in New York when he had dragged her in a secondhand bookshop to get enough books for the week (he was aiming for 4 minimum but 6 might have been better, just in case). They had been walking around for 10 minutes when she broke down in tears. When he turned around to ask her what was wrong he saw her standing there, sobbing, with one hand covering her mouth and the other holding an old copy of the Hobbit. They went back to their apartment without saying a word. That night she told him how their mother had been trying to make her read more since she was a little girl but Laura never liked reading. She'd whined for days every time she had to read something for school. She'd even tried to make Derek write an essay for her once. But Talia was hopeful and every year she gave her one book for her birthday. The first one had been The Hobbit on Laura's 8th birthday. The very next day, Derek went back to the bookshop and bought it for her. He waited for her birthday before giving it to her. After that she read every book Tolkien ever wrote.

A few weeks ago, Laura turned 8 and just like she had told him, there was a copy of the Hobbit amongst her presents. The Laura from this time wasn't really impressed; she barely looked at it before demanding that her Barbie be rescued from her plastic cage so that she could play with it. She won't notice if it's gone, he just had to take it.

The opportunity arrived on a Wednesday. It was the early afternoon, Laura and Peter were still at school and his dad was out. His mom let him alone in his room to work on a case that was obviously very important since this was the first time he had been left to play alone in 3 years. She was a few doors down in her office which meant he would have to be extra careful not to make any sound but this was probably his only chance.

He crawled his way towards Laura's bedroom thinking it would make less noise. Once inside he stood up and looked around. There was no book on the bedside table_, no surprise there_, nothing on the floor, _because that would have been too easy_, but when he looked higher he saw it. It was on the top shelf over her desk.

The first thing he did was climbing on her desk chair. But by the time he managed to reach the top, the thing had rolled away from the desk. He tried to move his body back and forth, making the chair roll even further away, before giving up and getting back down. He rolled it back against the desk and climbed again, this time making sure he was pushing it toward the desk. After that he stood up on top of the desk but it still wasn't enough. He took everything he could find on the lower shelf - mostly dictionaries, encyclopedias and coloring books – and pilled them up next to the shelves. It wasn't really stable, but by standing on his toes he finally managed to grab the book.

Climbing down was a lot easier and before he knew it he was on the floor with the book opened on his lap. "_In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit._" And for the few minutes, Derek was content… until Laura arrived and started to yell. "What are you doing in my room?! Give that backs it's mine!" and just like that his precious loot was gone.

_… … … …_

A few month later he wished he was back home with a boring teddy bear. But no, Derek was now in hell … also known as "preschool". They were children, tiny, real children everywhere. Some were crying, others were screaming and the few quiet ones were eating arts and craft supplies. Miss Bonny looked nice but she was completely out of her depth. Obviously this was her first day in the job. She was trying to calm the crying children while looking desperately at the arts and crafts eaters. _Well, now that I'm here I might as well do something useful._

Derek took the supplies away, putting them one by one in the cupboard were they had come from before taking the child who now had glue and glitter on his face to Miss Bonny. She thanked him profusely and took the kid to get washed up when another woman came to help.

Less than an hour later Miss bonny made them all sit in a semicircle around her. "Hi everyone! I know today his very scary for you but I swear everything will be okay." _You're the only one who's scared right now. _"Now, we're all going to introduce ourselves in front of the class. When I call your name, I want you to stand up, then tell us your full name and say one thing that you like and one that you don't like. For example: My name his Bonny Staford, I like books and I don't like when people are being mean." _Oh god, I can hear the lie even with my baby hearing._ One by one the children gave their name (except for the few who couldn't remember their last name) and talked about various foods, toys and people they liked or disliked. "Derek it's your turn." _Well here goes nothing._ "My name's Dew… DeRek Hale." _Fucking Rs._ "I like … wolves" _I guess, why not._ "and I don't like … fire." The silence that followed was probably due to the fact that half of those kids didn't know what wolves were or why fire could be scary but Miss Bonny was stunned to; she realized that one of her students was different. "You're right Derek, fire is very dangerous." He looked up at her with a look that was probably way too old for a 3 year old. "I know Miss Bonny."


	5. Chapter 4: We meet again

Chapter 4

Derek had a plan, a new one; better than sneaking in Laura's room. And today was the day. For the first time in 3 weeks the kids (well the other kids) were quiet during play time. Miss Bonny was at her desk, watching over them. He approached her slowly.

"Hey Derek what's up?" she asked when she noticed him. He wasn't sure if this was going to work but he needed this, for his own sanity. He must've looked shy because she got up and then kneeled in front of him before telling him "Derek what is it?" tenderly.

"Can … Can you teach me how to read please?"

_… … … …_

Once a week for that entire year in preschool, Miss Bonny and Derek used playtime for reading lessons. Derek had to fake at first but after a year he could "read" perfectly. He had bragged about his special reading lessons to his whole family. His mom gave him some books (there was still too much pictures but it was still progress). His dad was so proud he kept bragging about it to every other grownup he could find and Peter let him read his books while he was doing his homework, it soon became Derek's favorite time of the day. He would lie on his stomach on Peter's bed with a book opened in front of him, his tiny legs moving up and down when he read an exciting scene.

The years flew by after that. He got used to being a child, being happy. He remembered were he came from, what happened in his previous life, but he thought about it less and less every day. He was so used to this life; it was actually a surprise when his mom and Dad told him he was going to be a big brother. He was almost 6. Cora was coming ... which meant that a few months after Cora, Stiles would be born.

Derek had tried not to think about him since it happened. They had barely started dating. Actually Derek had not even thought about Stiles that way until Stiles had asked him out a few days after he turned 18. At first he was going to say no, but he couldn't find any reason to. They were good friends back then, Stiles was legal and even Derek could see that he was cute.

They went to a movie first. Derek picked the movie but he chose one he thought Stiles would like; something with superheroes he couldn't even remember the name of. The first few minutes were awkward but Stiles started talking, whispering facts about the characters and for some reason Derek found that endearing. They didn't kiss that night. Derek wanted to but for some reason he got scared. If Stiles hadn't called the very next day to invite Derek to dinner, he probably would have chickened out from the whole thing. But he did go to dinner with Stiles. They talked for hours and this time Derek kissed him goodnight. By the time Derek got sent back, they had gone to 4 dates and kissed 3 times. Derek had hoped that their next date, TV and pizza at Derek's loft, would be the perfect occasion for a first make out session. Obviously now it won't happen … for at least 18 years.

_… … … …_

Cora was loud. Derek started to regret crying and screaming when he was a baby, this was torture. It's Saturday afternoon and she has been screaming her lungs out for hours. There was only one thing left for Derek to do.

"Come on, Uncle Peter! Please! We could go see a movie! Or to the mall! Please!" Yes, begging his 16 year old uncle was the only way. They had to leave before Derek decided that running into the forest alone wasn't such a bad idea. "But I don't want to go out! Just go annoy somebody else." Derek was about to try again but Talia came into Peter's room and interrupted him. "Actually Peter we're running low on some groceries, would you mind going to the store? I'll make a list." _Alleluia, thanks mom._

_… … … …_

On the way to the grocery store, Derek realized that Peter was to quiet. Usually he'll ask Derek about school or they'll talk about the books they were reading. But for the last few days, Peter had been silent. He only talked when he had to and spent a lot of time either out or locked up in his room. _I guess it started then. _

"I know about your girlfriend." _Smooth Derek, and how am I going to explain that now? Fuck._ "I don't know what you're talking about." Peter kept staring at the road, his hands clenching the steering wheel so hard he could probably break it.

"Liar." It was weird seeing Peter like this. Even before the fire he was always in control; but right now, Derek didn't even need to hear his heartbeat to know he was lying.

"What is it to you anyway?" Peter parked the car and turned around to look at Derek in the back sit. "You should leave her. She won't leave him, you know that."

"You don't know ANYTHING. She loves me; she's going to leave him. She said she will!" There it was again, the blatant lie. Although this time Derek wasn't sure who Peter was trying to convince: his nephew or himself. "No Peter, she won't. She won't leave her fiancé for a 16 year old; she'd end up in jail."

Peter stared at Derek, trying to understand how. How did Derek find out? How can he sound so sure? How did he become so … grown up? He was 6 years old; he shouldn't even understand any of this. "How ? … You? I don't get it! You shouldn't… Fuck" _Maybe I went too far. He'll know something is up now…_

_… … … …_

Things were still awkward for the first 5 minutes in the store but then Derek went back to being a 6 year old and Peter probably though he had been crazy thinking his nephew was abnormal somehow. They almost had everything when Derek suddenly ran towards the baby aisle. Peter called after him but he wasn't coming back. He went after him and found his nephew looking down into a baby carriage. A young couple was with him.

"Uncle Peter, look!" Derek whispered. "It's a baby!"

"I know what a baby looks like Derek, we left a screaming one back home." Clearly the man didn't like Peter's repartee; he stared at Peter who just then realized the man was wearing a uniform. "I'm sorry if my nephew is bothering you Sir …?"

"Stilinski. And it's no trouble at all; this little man was very polite." The 'unlike you' was silent but Peter got the message.

While Peter tried (and mostly failed) to smooth things over with the Deputy, Derek continued to admire the baby who one day would ask to be called Stiles. And who one day, hopefully, would be his boyfriend. _I have 18 years to make a plan, how could it fail?_


	6. Chapter 5: Changes are made

Chapter 5

A few months after that day at the grocery store, Derek realized that meeting Stiles so soon wasn't such a good thing after all; now he couldn't get him out of his head. Not the baby obviously but the teenager who had annoyed him for 2 years. He thought about those 4 dates and 3 kisses, wishing he could be 24 sooner. He tried to occupy himself the best he could. He did his best at school and, with the knowledge he already had, his teacher decided that he should skip a few grades and start third grade next year. It wasn't part of his initial plan to blend in, but he really couldn't take anymore finger-painting. At home he spent his time reading or doing the children version of "exercising"; running around outside; which was exactly what he was doing when he heard someone crying in the forest.

He couldn't hear it clearly, his werewolf earing hadn't properly kicked in yet, but it was there. He took off, focusing on the sound to make sure he was going the right way. Not too far from the edge but far enough not to be heard from the house, he found Peter sitting on the ground, both his hands covering his face and his body shacking with each sob. Derek walked slowly until he was close enough to put his tiny hand on his uncle's shoulder.

He didn't ask anything, Peter was crying too much to be able to answer anyway. He just stayed there, trying to be comforting while giving him some space. Eventually the sobbing stopped even though the tears remained. "She laughed." Peter whispered. "I thought… I thought if I broke up with her she'd... But she laughed." The teenager started to sob again. _So he did listen_, Derek thought. _I changed something_.

In Derek's old life no one ever found out until it was too late. Sarah, the 21 year old Peter had been dating, used him until a few month after his 17th birthday. She told him she loved him and had sex with him, while staying with her fiancé Larry Tate. Derek never really knew the real story, only that she left Peter when she found out she was pregnant and married Larry a few weeks later. Now Malia will never be born and Derek couldn't stop himself from feeling guilty about that. But what life would have had? A coyote in a girl's body; not able to learn how to be human again but too far gone to go back to being a coyote. The last time Derek had seen her she was still struggling with her instincts, even after a year of being human.

But this time Peter broke up with Sarah, probably thinking she would cry and beg him to stay. She would've left Tate and they would've been happy ever after. But she didn't. "She said she wouldn't leave her fiancée for jailbait…" Derek wrapped his armed around Peter's neck and hugged him like he did 4 years ago. He was about to tell him how much better off he was without her when someone appeared behind them.

_… … … …_

Talia had realized that Derek wasn't in front of the house 5 minutes after he took off. She'd followed his sent and found him and Peter while the teenager was talking about a girl leaving him. The alpha was not a fool, she knew Peter was with someone, but she'd thought it had been a regular relationship between teenagers. When she heard the world "Jailbait" her blood ran cold. She had let someone hurt her beta, her little brother. He was her responsibility since their parents were killed by hunters and she'd failed him. She wanted to rip that bitch's head off.

She walked toward Peter and Derek, without a word she knelt next to them and took them in her arms. Peter stayed still for a few seconds before leaning against her. "I don't know who she is baby brother but she's going to regret ever being born, I promise."

_… … … …_

Being a lawyer was probably the only thing that kept the Hale Alpha from committing murder that day. Instead she took both Peter and Derek to the Sheriff's station. While Peter and Talia were talking to the sheriff, Derek was told to stay with the "nice deputy who will take care of him"; who turned out to be a very tired looking deputy Stilinski.

"So young man, what do you want to do? I could find some papers and crayons for you to draw a nice picture for your mom, what do you say?" John asked. No one had ever told Derek how awkward it was to talk to your (hopefully) future father in law when both you and your future boyfriend are way too young to even be boyfriends. But he figured most people never got that 'pleasure'.

"No thank you, I'm going to be in 3rd grade next year you know? I'm not a baby." Derek said trying to sound smart to prove his point; then again trying to sound smarter than his age might not be the best approach since the 6 year gap between him and Stiles was big enough as it was.

"Okay, then how about that: have you ever seen a real prison cell?" The deputy said; sure that he would have the 6 year old worship him for showing him something cool. _As a matter of fact, I have…_

_… … … …_

It took month for Peter to become normal again. The weeks following the break up were hard on him, especially since he had to testify several times before Sarah was finally sent to jail for a year. After that Peter was quiet for a few months before starting to come back to life. Now he was a senior in BHHS and had started dating a nice brunette who shared some of his classes.

Derek had thrived in 3rd grade, his teacher was amazed and he had talked to the middle school to get Derek tested before choosing which grade would suit him best next. Talia was a bit scared to see her son jumping so far ahead so fast but all the teachers seemed to think it was for the best. In the end Derek told them he didn't want to skip more classes. He knew he could but School was not as fun when even his classmates treated him as a kid. And maybe he didn't want to be so far ahead from the friends he'd had in his previous life; after all, he used to think High School was the best time of his life … before Kate.


	7. Chapter 6: Howl

Notes: Hum, so ... I have an idea about most of the story now. I probably still have a few blank years that need a story or at least an small anecdote but I at least know were I'm going. The thing is, what should have been a "fluffy, happy, almost crack-y" story went kinda dark on this chapter so ... WARNING : There is violence in this chapter

Chapter 6: Howl

**Warning**: graphic violence

Things were changing and Derek knew it but it wasn't really his life that changed, at least not for a while. He was 8 years old and as far as he remembered, his life wasn't much different than the first time. Peter though, was a lot different. In his previous life, Derek's uncle had barely managed to graduate high school, probably because of his depression following Sarah's betrayal, and he had gone to the local college only to drop out a few months later. This time, Peter had graduated with honors and in a few weeks he will be starting his freshman year at Berkeley. Not only that, but he was still dating his high school sweetheart Winifred, who was also going to attend Berkeley. But none of that had any kind of influence on Derek's own life; at least that what he thought until now.

Peter was reading under a tree at the edge of the forest and Derek had been allowed to play outside as long as he stayed within his uncle's earing range. It wasn't often that he was allowed to go in the forest alone, he barely remembers doing that in his previous life, so Derek ran and jumped around like he use to do with Boyd, Erica and Isaac. He was so caught up in his memories of his pack he didn't realize how far he went. When he finally stopped, he was nowhere near Peter or the house. He was about to turn back when something exploded on the tree next to him, blinding him with flashes of light.

He tried to cover his eyes but it was too late; he couldn't see anything but shapes, his ears where ringing because of the explosion and he could smell 2 strangers around him. There was nothing he could do, he was trapped. Before he could react, one of the strangers grabbed his arms from behind and dragged him until his back hit a tree. His vision started to come back in time to see the other man walking toward him with a chain. A few seconds later he was tied to the tree.

_That never happened before, I would've remembered. _And at that moment he remembered why as a child, he never went in the forest, especially alone: because of Peter. His uncle used to tell him scary stories about the forest and the hunters. He'd told him hunters cut werewolves in two (which was actually true) but also that hunters ate werewolves for breakfast and that young werewolves tasted better. After a few of those stories, young Derek had been too scared to go anywhere near the forest alone, at least until he grew old enough to figure out that Peter was just being a dick.

When Derek managed to snap out of his trip down memory lane, he heard the strangers, probably hunters, whisper to each other. One of them seamed younger, maybe 20, while the other looked old enough to be a grandfather.

"He's just a kid! We can't just kill him!" said the younger one. "He's a beast! Just like the rest of them, if we don't kill him now, who knows how many he will kill in a few years? Do you want that blood on your hands?" _This doesn't sound good._ The fight between the hunters kept going and Derek was getting more and more anxious by the minute…until he heard something; a howl. _Peter_. He sounded too far to be able to find them by sent but Derek knew there was a way to get him on the right path. Before the hunters could react, the young werewolf concentrated hard on that little werewolf power he had and tried as hard as he could to remember what it felt like to be a full-grown shape shifter before howling back. At first he thought it was too weak but for the first time since he came back he felt his face shifting. His claws and fangs were out and he could see a tiny bit better witches meant that his eyes were glowing.

The young hunter looked terrified while his companion came running toward Derek before hitting him in the chest with the butt of his rifle. By the time the werewolf got his breath back, Peter appeared out of nowhere with fangs, claws and yellow glowing eyes. The old man aimed his rifle at him but a fraction of second before he fired; Peter grabbed the barrel and pointed it at the other hunter. The shot destroyed the young man throat, killing him almost instantly. The man holding the rifle froze, his eyes staring at his companion's lifeless body. Peter, who was still holding the barrel, growled before jumping on him. A second shot sounded when they fell on the ground followed only by the animalistic noises Peter made while violently and repeatedly slashing the hunter's face and throat.

Derek knew what Peter was capable of, he saw it before, but this was supposed to be a different Peter. This Peter was never supposed to have the glowing blue eyes that were now looking up at him.

Notes: I hope I didn't freak you all out ... Don't worry, there won't be too much violence and we will get back to the Sterek part of the story soon. I just felt like this needed to happen, I don't want the story to be some sort of "always happy and funny world", it is Teen Wolf after all. And I think after 8 years Derek needed to realize that no matter how much he knows and how old he really is, there's still danger in the world and he can't predict it all.


	8. Chapter 7: Consequences

Notes: Thank you so much for the comments ! It makes writing ten times better to get your feedbacks ^^  
I really liked writing this chapter even though I had a tiny writer's block when I started, but turns out sometimes you just need to re-read the entire thing to figure out the next step. I hope you'll enjoy it :)

Chapter 7

Things were tense at the Hale House. The attack on Derek was 3 days ago and for the first time in 8 years he felt like he was back in his old life. Peter was not allowed to leave the house but it wouldn't have been a problem since he refuses to leave his room. He hasn't said a word either and Derek was worried he was going to become the old (well previous) Peter.

The Hale children were not allowed outside of the house alone and they could only ask to go out in a public place with Talia or her husband, the forest was now off-limits. Laura had whined for hours when she found out, she was a teenager now and staying home during the summer was lame she said. Cora had cried because it meant she wasn't allowed to go to one of her friend's slumber party. Derek had just nodded.

The worst part was that they hadn't heard anything from the other hunters. Talia had sent a message to the local hunters they had contact with to ask for an explanation. They had no spoken treaty with them but those hunters had been here for years and, even after a few misunderstandings, they had left each other alone. Now Talia wanted to know why two armed hunters had been so close to their house, and most importantly why they had attacked her 8 year old son.

They were eating dinner when Talia suddenly got up and looked outside through the window. "Hunters?" Derek asked. She did not answer him.

"Take the kids upstairs, get Peter and stay in the safe room." She ordered to her husband. "They don't look armed but it could be a trap." _So it's a Hale trait to jump into traps willingly? Good to know_. Everyone got up, Laura and Cora already on their way to leave the room.

"I should stay with you, it's me they attacked!" His whole family stopped and turned around to stare at him. _Oh right, I'm 8_. "Derek, go with your father."

"But mom-"

"NOW Derek!" She snapped at him, her eyes flashing red. Derek opened his mouth to protest but his mother was quicker, she looked behind his shoulder, said "Damien." with her authoritative voice and before a sound came out of Derek, his father was lifting him and throwing him on his shoulder.

_… … … …_

The safe room was basically a panic room in the middle of the house with no windows, thick walls and a door that could probably withstand an explosion. The only problem about this room was that Derek couldn't hear anything that happened outside of it. His father and Peter probably could but the only thing Derek could hear was his sisters' heart beats. They were each sitting on one side of their father, hiding their faces in his chest while Peter was in a corner, silent.

Derek was pacing in circles for a few minutes until Damien told him to stop. Now he was sitting next to Peter but he couldn't stop twitching. His mom was in a dangerous situation that hadn't happened before, _what if she dies even younger than the first time? What if they all died? It's all my fault_…

"She's going to be okay you know?" Peter whispered. "She's the Alpha and they're just three little huma-"

"They're hunters!" Derek snapped. "Why do you always have to underestimate humans?"

"What are you talking about? When did I underestimate humans before?" _Shit. _Derek decided to stop talking since he was clearly losing control but Peter had another idea.

"You're weird you know that?" He started. "Ever since you were born I noticed there was something not quite right about you." Derek refused to answer and kept staring at the wall in front of them. "You were so quiet… and you kept staring at me with that look… like you knew something; like you hated me." Peter said nothing for a few seconds before continuing. "And then out of nowhere you apologized. I mean; you were what? Two? And you hugged me and said you were sorry like… I don't know, like you actually did it on purpose and realized you're mistake. Now, what kind of 2 year old apologizes for something he had been doing since birth?"

"I … I don't remember it" _And I really hope he can't focus on my heart beat with Laura's and Cora's being so loud. _Peter barely acknowledged Derek's input and kept going with his monologue. He was also staring at the wall and it felt like he was voicing things that had been on his mind for a long time.

"And then that thing with Sarah. There was no way you could've known, I thought about it for weeks, you could NOT have known, no one could've." _Yeah I kind of screwed up there._ "The things you said… No 6 year old should be able to give relationship advices Derek, it's not normal." For a second Derek thought he should tell Peter, but when he turned his head to face him his eyes fell on his father and sisters. None of them seem to pay attention but Derek new his father could probably hear everything. Peter followed Derek's gaze.

"Your parents noticed to you know? Those looks you get sometimes or the way you talk when you get angry; like you're way older than you should be. They don't say anything because they're afraid that it's true; that someway, somehow, you're not… their child." Derek looked his uncle in the eyes but said nothing. He knew that if he tried to deny it, Peter would know he lied. There was no way around this; Peter knew. Now he just had to decide if he should tell them all … or wait and talk to Peter alone.

Before he could decide, Talia opened the door. She looked tired but relieved. "Everything is okay now, let's go downstairs and talk."

_… … … …_

It turned out that the hunters who came that night were there to apologize. The two men who had attacked him were "newbies" who had decided to go on a hunt without the knowledge of their superior. Derek didn't know hunters recruited people that old but then again, those weren't the Argents. They were just a bunch of guys who had found out the truth about the supernatural world and couldn't leave it alone. Talia had talked it out with their leader and now they were about to start negotiating a real treaty, something that definitely never happened in Derek's previous life. He wasn't sure if this was good or bad, but with the way Peter was looking at him; he clearly had more important things to deal with.


	9. Chapter 8: Sharing the burden

Chapter 8: Sharing the burden

It took two days to convince Talia to let Derek and Peter go out without one of the adults. Two days of Peter giving Derek strange looks when no one was looking. Talia finally agreed to let them go see a movie if they promised to stay together and to stay out of trouble. Instead they went to the park and sat on an isolated bench.

"You have to promise me you won't say anything to the others." Derek started after a few minutes of awkward silence.

"Derek, whatever it is, maybe they should know. I thi-"

"Promise me, or I'm not telling anything." Derek's voice started to sound more and more like it used to. Or maybe it was just him who became more and more like his old self.

"Fine, I promise I won't tell anyone! Now can you please tell me what it's about, the suspense is killing me." Peter was trying to sound sarcastic but his impatience was too obvious.

"I hum … I technically come from the future?" Derek had been stressing over this conversation for two days and yet he had never thought about how to tell his uncle the truth. "I mean, not exactly … I'm not even sure if it's the future or some kind of alternate universe. Maybe both, I guess…"

"When … since when are you … not you?" Peter's face was priceless; if Derek wasn't so scared of the consequences he would totally make fun of it… and probably take pictures.

"I'm still me! I'm Derek I'm just … reliving my life from the start with the memories from my previous life." _Yeah that's a better way to explain it_. "I was talking to this witch and, for some reason; she cast a spell at me and pouf! I woke up in my crib 24 years in the past." Peter stayed silent for a while; he just stared at nothing in particular while processing what he was just told. Then he looked back at Derek and opened his mouth but it took a few seconds before he finally choose witch question to ask first.

"So you're not really 8 but 24?"

"More like 32 now actually…" _God I'm so old…_

"And you know the future? You know what happens to us for the next few years?"

"I do, well sort off… That's kind of the problem. I changed a few things and now, things are starting happen that never happened before. Those hunters in the woods, that didn't happened the first time! I had no idea they were going to be there!"

"So that's why you were so scared? Because you didn't know what was going to happen?"

"Yes!"

"Well good for you! Do you have any idea how dangerous it is to change the past? You could create a fucking time paradox and get us all killed!" _Oh . Peter, I can hear the jealousy from here._

"Didn't you hear what I just said? I already changed things! It's kind of too late to take it back now. Besides you don't know what happens in the future and believe me, you'd want me to change it if you did!"

"What do you mean? Are we in danger?"

"Not if I can stop it." After that Derek decided that Peter knew enough. His uncle kept asking questions until they got home but there was no way he'd tell him about the fire… Or what happened 6 years later.

_… … … …_

A few weeks later, Talia signed a treaty with the local hunters. It was simple, the hunters promised not to hurt innocent werewolves and if they thought a werewolf was killing innocents, they would consult Talia before doing anything. In exchange, Talia promised not to turn any humans and to make sure her pack stayed peaceful. Both sides also promised to keep the other updated on any suspicious activity in the sector. Derek was still uncomfortable about this, he couldn't remember what had happened to those hunters but he knew one thing for sure, when the Argents were here, they had been the only hunters in Beacon Hills.

_… … … …_

When the day of the next full moon arrived, Derek started to feel his wolf getting agitated. At first he thought it was normal, he barely remembered what it felt like to be so young, maybe his powers were just starting to mature. But by the time the sun started to go down, he lost control over his senses. The music Laura was listening on low volume sounded like it was loud enough to shake the walls, his sense of smell refused to smell anything else then the rabbit not far from the house in the forest. He felt like he could wolf out any second and run off to kill the tiny fluffy thing and eat it.

This was definitely NOT normal and that's when he remembered; that night in the forest, when he had howled to call Peter… He had shifted. In his previous life, Derek had been 12 when he first shifted. The first shift is what indicates the beginning of a born werewolf's maturity. He knew now that after tonight, his senses and strength will get better every day until he got back to being a full grown shape shifter.

One more thing he had changed, but he had no time to think about the consequences. For now he had to go to his alpha because the first few full moons were always the worst… Even if he had an anchor, no wolf ever managed to have control on their first full moon.

_… … … …_

Talia was not happy about it. She didn't want her baby to grow up to fast but she had no choice. Laura was starting to gain control but she still needed Talia's presence so the Alpha took Laura, Peter and Derek and they stayed in the safe room all night.

Derek had to be chained to the wall and Laura soon after. The sight of her little brother, mad with rage shattered the little control she had and Talia understood. She could feel her wolf screaming inside of her, she could feel her cub's pain and rage. She had no idea what had happened to Derek and she knew he wasn't going to tell her… and in a way it was probably for the best. If she knew who had caused him so much pain, there would be no chain strong enough to keep her from slashing their throat.


	10. Chapter 9: The wolf's anchor

Chapter 9: The wolf's anchor

The sun was already high in the sky when Derek woke up. He opened his eyes briefly but it was too bright, he felt like he'd been run over by a truck several times and his head ache was by far the worst he's ever had. He tried to stay still but it only made things worse, he could relax his muscles and the pain intensified until it was too much. It started with a small whimper but by the time Talia got into the room he was already screaming in pain. He felt her hand on his back and the pain started to go away. When he managed to stop screaming he heard her voice whispering soothing words in his hear. A few minutes later he was back in a restless sleep.

_… … … …_

The second time he woke up was to a voice he hadn't heard since he came back. Deaton and his mom were standing right next to his bed, which confirmed that something was definitely wrong with Derek.

"…would be better. I don't know why it happened, or how, but there's no way he can learn to control that kind of power at his age." The veterinarian sounded unsure but curious, like he had discovered something new and wanted to know everything about it.

"Are you sure they're nothing we could do?" Talia looked exhausted, it was dark outside but Derek wasn't sure what day it was. _How long have I been unconscious?_

"All we can do is wait, in the meantime: keep an eye on him and don't let him out of your sight."

"Mom…" Derek's voice was weak and his throat felt so dry that talking was painful. His mother sat down on his bed and took his hand.

"Derek sweetie, how are you feeling?"

He was about to say that he started to feel better but instead he felt his claws and fangs come out. He had no time to warn his alpha before he shifted completely and lost control.

_… … … …_

The few weeks following were just more of the same. He would have a few minutes off lucidity, several hours of restless sleep and the rest of the time his wolf was out of control. He was chained up to his bed, Talia never leaving his side. She fed him, bathed him and held him in her arms whenever he was lucid enough to not try to kill her. She had tried to force him to shift back when he's out of control but even her influence as his alpha was not enough.

Peter left for college but he kept calling every day to get news. Sometimes Talia would put him on speaker and he would talk to Derek about Winifred or his classes or the fraternities he might pledge for. The thought of Peter in a fraternity made Derek laugh for the first time since that first full moon.

Finally after almost 2 month he started to get better. He still had periods of time when he couldn't control himself but he slept better and had a few hours in the day of "normality". He even started his homeschool studies. Obviously he couldn't go to school but his Dad was qualified enough to teach him. The next full moon was still hell but he managed to wake up without wolfing out the next morning.

His uncle Jason decided to come back to live with them. It was nothing new, he had come back around the same time in Derek's previous life, but this time it was even more welcome. Talia needed her pack and with Peter gone Jason had to come back for his big sister, for his alpha and especially for his nephew.

Derek's 9th birthday came and went. They had a small family diner and he got a lot of books from Peter who couldn't be there. A few months later he was almost back to normal, he still couldn't control the shift but he wasn't feral except for full moons. When he finally managed to get some control, they gradually exposed him back to civilization. They started with a drive around town at night, then the same thing during the day, then a trip to see Deaton who was really impressed with Derek's progress.

On Derek's 10th birthday he could go into a store with Talia, she celebrated by taking him to the mall (on a weekday to make sure there won't be too many people). They went to a bookshop where he was allowed not only to take three books of his choice but also to go to the register on his own. He was so proud of himself, after more than a year without being able to leave the house, a year of struggling to find his anchor back; he was finally back, hopefully for good.

It had been difficult at first because his old anchor wasn't working anymore. The fire hadn't happen, everyone was alive. He wasn't angry all the time like he used to. Now whenever he felt the wolf getting out of control, he thought of his family. His mom holding him, his father being proud of him, Laura squeezing his hand and reading to him when he couldn't fall asleep once he started to gain his control back, Cora giving drawings every day when he couldn't leave his room and Peter, calling when he could to talk about everything and nothing at the same time. His family had brought him back, they anchored him. He knew it wasn't enough, he could feel his wolf boiling inside; but for now it would do.

It took him awhile to choose the books, but since his mom told him he could take anything and she was looking from afar to let him by them on his own; he took the first book of "A song of Ice and Fire" and two Terry Pratchett. The clerk was nice and everything went well… until Derek left the store, his mom following him, he heard a scream and froze. A child screaming in the mall was nothing new but somehow that scream resonated in his head… but it wasn't him who was reacting to it, it was his wolf. He dropped the books and ran. He found the source of the scream on the other side of the mall. Stiles.

The four year old was standing in the food court, big tears falling down his cheeks. There was no one in the food court except for the teenager working there but he didn't seem to care. Derek kneeled in front of him, making sure there eyes were on the same level.

"Hey, what's your name?" Derek could see his mom not too far but she stopped and watched. Obviously her son was still in control and maybe this was a good thing.

"…St…Stiles..." _He was already Stiles at 4? I'm never going to know his real name…_

"Do you want me to help you find your mom?" Stiles looked up, his lips still wobbling but no longer crying. He nodded vigorously.

"Do you remember where you saw her last?"

"We were looking at the shoes and … and then I got hungry and…"

"So you left to find food?"

"YES! And it says "food" right here!" Stiles pointed at the "Food court" sign. "But the mister he didn't want to give me any, he's mean."

"Yes, yes he is, but you know what? I still got a little money and there's a vending machine just there." Derek got up and took Stiles' hand before walking to the machine. "Reese's?" He asked looking down at little Stiles. "YES!" The four year old was no longer crying, he looked up at Derek, jumping up and down with excitement.

"Yes what?"

"Yes please!"

Derek bought the candy before taking them to the nearest bench. His mom was talking to a women and it didn't take long for Derek to figure out it was Stiles' mom. They didn't seem to mind letting their sons alone. He gave one of the peanut butter cups to the kid and started to eat the other. Stiles started babbling between every bite and for the first time in a year and a half, Derek's wolf was calm. He had found it, his wolf's anchor.

* * *

End Note:

I'm really happy about how this chapter turned out! I hope you did too ^^  
Thank you all for the reviews! Ana


	11. Chapter 10: Hormones and other problems

Chapter 10: Hormones and other problems

Getting control over his wolf was the best thing that happened to Derek in a long time. It wasn't always easy; his wolf was too powerful for his age and his parents couldn't find a reason to explain it. He saw Dr. Deaton every 3 months or so to check his progress and make sure he wasn't in danger. The vet's diagnostic was always the same: Derek's wolf was fully developed which made him and his wolf out of sync. With training he could control his wolf until his body matures enough to match his powers and everything will be normal. But even if his control was not perfect, he finally had his full strength back. He no longer felt weak. Laura was not happy about it though. She had barely started to mature when Derek's powers were already strong enough to match their dad's.

Once Derek was able to control his powers enough, their uncle Jason started to train them. They run in the forest and fight either each other or the two of them against their uncle. It took a long time for her to accept the fact that her little brother was stronger than her. But after more than a year of training together they became extremely close.

She was sixteen now, and Derek knew what that meant. In a few weeks from now, Laura is going to come home and lock herself up in her room. She'll refuse to open the door for a day, and then Talia would get tired of waiting and break it down. From what Derek remembers, Laura's boyfriend is going to cheat on her and breakup with her for some other girl. Laura will be heartbroken for a few days, maybe weeks, then she'll spread a nasty rumor about her ex and everything will go back to normal.

He'd decided not to say anything, but it didn't mean that he wouldn't feel bad about it. He tried not to think about it but Peter, who was visiting for the weekend, saw right through him. He took Derek for a walk in the preserve; they kept quiet until they were too far to be heard from the house.

"So… spill. What's going on?"

"Nothing… yet."

"Oh. So what's going to happen?"

"Laura's been dating that guy an-"

"Okay, I'm going to stop you right there. Is it going to be a regular teenage heartbreak?" Peter asked, slightly relieved that no one was going to die.

"Yeah… I guess you could call it that."

"Then don't do anything."

Derek stopped walking and stared at his uncle. "It's not that simple!"

"Yes, it is Derek! Teenagers fall in and out of love all the time! Sure you get a little hurt sometimes, but it's life! It's part of the growing up process: you meet someone and think you're going to spend the rest of your life with them, and sure sometimes it's true but most of the time you're just going to get hurt. And then you meet someone else and try again… You should know that, you used to be a teenager right?"

"Yeah well I didn't exactly have any luck as a teenager…" _Euphemism of the century. _"Actually I never really got lucky even after puberty…"

Peter looked down at him with a smirk and a raised eyebrow.

"I didn't mean it like that you pervert!"

… … … …

Derek could not decide if hitting puberty was a good thing or not. Acne was bad, even with werewolf powers. Boners were good, when he was alone…in his room…with no one else in the house… which happened once. His voice changing was just plain awkward, the first time it happened he refused to talk for a week. But even with all that, puberty brought something even worse… hormones. His hormones weren't so bad, sure he had to hide a few awkward erections sometimes but being a werewolf he could at least feel them before it was too late and anticipate. No the worst was other people's hormones. He was fifteen now and for the first time since he got back, his relationship with the kids his "age" were getting more than just awkward but also very disturbing.

He was back in school after being homeschooled since his first transformation. He didn't even have a grade in advance now since his mom decided that being with people his own age would be good for him… In Derek's opinion; she was very very wrong.

The boys were talking about girls, boobs, porn and one time in the locker room he even found himself in the middle of a "who as the biggest dick" conversation and barely managed to escape before they started to measure.

And the girls were so much worse than he remembered. At first he thought that his wolf was projecting some kind of hormones or something, but when he asked Peter, his uncle just laugh. He also said that the girls were probably noticing him because he was different than the other teenage boys; quieter, more mature. And when he thought about it, it seemed possible.

The first time he was a teenager, he had been just like those guys. Hell he even remembers comparing length AND girth with the entire basketball team once. Now he was just dark and brooding… and Stiles had said it was even more attractive, it made him look "mysterious" he said. Plus he used to flirt with every girl in school, now he barely acknowledges them. And everyone knows: people want what they can't have.

_Well see if I care,_ Derek thought while walking in the school's main corridor, _I'm going to be so fucking invisible, in a month no one will remember my n-_

His train of thoughts was brutally interrupted when he bumped into someone.

"Oh god I'm so sorry…" The girl said while she picked up the books she had dropped down. Normally Derek would help but he was too busy staring and thinking 'Oh shit' over and over again. The girl stood up and smiled at him.

"Hi, I'm … sorry… again. I wasn't looking."

"It's… It's okay I… wasn't looking either."

"I'm Paige by the way."

_I know._

* * *

**Notes:**

New chapter hey!  
I know I'm jumping forward in time a lot and I don't give a lot of details about other characters and their life but I just like to let a bit to the imagination and I also don't really feel like it's needed? Idk what do you think, should I add a little bit more background stories on other characters or stick to Derek's POV ? What other POV would you like to see?

Anyway, I hope you liked this chapter ^^  
Don't hesitate to comment and/or leave a kudo !  
And check out my two little ficlets I wrote to practice, I'd really like to have feedbacks :)

Ana

P.S. : I'd like to write more drabbles or ficlets to practice so if you have a prompt for one you think I could do, send me a message on Tumblr ;) (URL : Ana-is-fangirling)


	12. Chapter 11: Communication

Chapter 11: Communication is the best tool of any relationship

Barely a few weeks back in high school and Derek was already failing his "Leave Paige Alone" plan. Of course it wasn't much of a plan, more like a decision to ignore her existence so that she will hopefully live through high school, but ever since he bumped into her a few weeks ago, it's like she'd attached herself to his side. Every morning she's waiting for him at his locker, every free period they share she always knows where to find him (he even tried to hide once, she still found him) and even weirder: she ate lunch with him. Even when they dated she still ate alone to study in peace, but now he can't seem to shake her off.

Once again he decided to talk to Peter about it, without telling him about the fact that he was a little responsible for her death of course. They went to a movie this time, choosing to sit at the back for a random action movie to, at least, have a reason to leave the house that won't be suspicious.

"So basically the girl you loved in high school and who died tragically in your arms now has a crush on you and that's… bad? Why is that bad?" Peter was always confused during there "I'm from the future-sort off-it's complicated" talks, this time was no exception.

"Because she died tragically! Don't you get it? I got her killed!" _Why do I even talk to him? I can't tell him the whole story…_

"So don't do that again! There, problem solved. And why are you not dating her again? Aren't you supposed to be in love or something?"

"That was years ago! I don't love her like that anymore, she's a child!" No matter how hard he tried, Derek could not believe he was the same age as the kids in his class. He will probably stay celibate until he is at least back to being 24… and that as nothing to do with Stiles. Nope. Not at all.

"You do realize that not dating anyone, or at least show some sort of interest, until your mid-twenties is going to look weird right? And what the hell is a Stiles?"

_Shit, I said that out loud._

"You were with someone when you came back?"

_I am so NOT talking about that with Peter. _"No."

"Liar."

"Fuck you! I'm not talking about it."

"Why 24 though? That makes no sense…"

"Jesus could you please just… forget about it."

"Are you kidding? You're willing to stay celibate and wait for 24 years for this girl, I won't stop until you tell me everything."

"Oh ok you want to play that game; how about you tell me what happened between you and Fred?"

Peter's amused face turned sour; he turned away from Derek and stared at the screen. "That's completely different."

"How? You were with her for years, we were all betting that you were going to propose soon, suddenly you come home, say it's over and we're supposed to forget about it? We all see how miserable you are Peter."

"It was month ago, I'm fine."

"Now who's lying?"

"I thought we were here to talk about Paige?"

Derek refused to answer. True they were supposed to talk about Paige, even though it seemed less important than Peter's wellbeing, but he was not lying when he said Peter was miserable. After a few minutes where they both stared at the screen without even trying to understand what was happening in the movie he finally turned his head back toward Peter.

"Do you have anything better than "Date her but don't kill her this time"?"

"How about you just tell her you're not interested?"

"Do I have to?" Derek whined, he had hopped Peter was going to say something like 'Just wait a few days, she'll get bored and forget about you.' But obviously that's not happening.

"Yes… And sooner the better, believe me I know."

Peter was still pretending to watch the screen but his watering eyes betrayed him.

"You really don't want to talk about it?" Derek tried one last time.

Peter dropped his head in his hands and sighed heavily. "I wanted to propose but… I needed her to know first. About us, what we are." He continued after a short silence. "So I told her, and then she told me to leave."

"She didn't believe you?"

"Oh no she believed me, especially after I shifted. She's just… afraid of me."

Derek couldn't find the right words to comfort his uncle. He couldn't even blame Fred, they were freaking werewolves; she's allowed to be afraid. He whispered briefly "I'm sorry." Not knowing what else to say. They watched the end of the movie and drove home in silence, both of them lost in their thoughts.

… … … …

Derek thought everything through and after a few days he decided to tell Paige he wasn't interested. For a fleeting moment he had thought about dating her again, maybe try to tell her sooner now that he knew she wouldn't mind and find out what might have been. But on his way to school he saw 9 year old Stiles with Deputy Stilinski, probably on their way to Stiles' school in the police cruiser, and felt his wolf calm down instantly. There was no way he could be with someone else, not now anyway.

Paige was pretty easy to find since she was once again at his locker. She started talking as soon as he arrived next to her.

"Did you hear about Stacy? Oh my god, I can't believe that jerk did that to her. I me-"

"Paige, can we talk?"

"We're talking right now weirdo." She giggled.

"I mean in private." He didn't wait for an answer and dragged her by the arm into an empty room. He was pretty sure it was a teacher's office but at that instant he could care less. He started to talk really fast, trying to remember everything he had prepared on his way to school.

"Listen, I know I never said anything, and I should have, but I need to tell you right now before things get out of hand… I don't like you."

"Excuse me?!" Paige stared him down with rage.

"I didn't mean it like that! I mean, I like you as a friend, I just don't like LIKE you!" _God I sound like Stiles…_

"Oooohh." That sigh of relief was not what he had expected. "Well duuh. Why do you think you have to tell me?"

"Well I… I thought you… liked LIKED me." Derek was definitely not prepared to have the girl he just literally rejected laugh at his face.

"It's okay Derek, I know you're gay. You don't have to pretend with me."


	13. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

Derek was sitting at the kitchen table, working on an essay for his history class. He usually worked in his room but history was his least favorite subject and he needed an easy access to comfort food. The Nutella and peanut butter were already halfway gone but he had run out of bread, he was trying to decide between eating them without bread or getting the ice cream when his mother walked in.

"I see you have another history paper to do." She looked tired but she smiled at him affectionately.

"Yep. If I explain to my teacher that I have no intention to do any kind of job related to history ever, do you think I could stop taking that class?"

"Please don't do that, the last parent-teacher meeting was bad enough." She put down her suitcase on the chair next to him and got herself a glass of wine. Derek opened his mouth to ask how her day went when his phone rang to indicate a text.

From Peter: "Guess who I ran into today."

_Cryptic Peter, that doesn't sound good._

To Peter: "The guy you bought your brain from? You should get a refund." He stared back at the two paragraphs he had written and tried to find some motivation to write the last one he needed but he received a new text before his fingers hit the first key.

From Peter: " . No idiot, some kid named Stiles. And guess how old he'll be when you'll be 24? Well I guess you already know that :p"

He put down his phone, not willing to have that conversation over texts… or at all, and prayed for the floor to open up and swallow him. His mother had settled with her own work in front of him and they worked in silence for over half an hour when Derek's phone rang again. He thought about ignoring it but decided otherwise. After all, at least by text he won't have to see Peter's smug face. But this time it wasn't from Peter.

From Paige: "Samuel Johnson, David Hiver, Terry Smith. Marry, kiss or Kill?"

_What?!_

To Paige: "What?!"

This time he was so shocked he was still staring at his phone when the answer came.

From Paige: "Come on Der, I need to know. For science."

To Paige: "I'd kill them all, now leave me alone I still have an entire paragraph to write for Satan."

Once again he put his phone down and tried to get back to work only to be interrupted by another text.

From Paige: "You suck, you won't get any boyfriend w/ an attitude like that."

With a frustrated sigh he turned off his phone and slammed it against the table. Talia looked up from her papers curiously.

"Trouble?" She asked.

"Only Peter and Paige being way too interested in my love life, or lack thereof."

She gave him a motherly smile. "Don't worry Derek, you're 15. You have plenty of time to get a girlfriend."

He hesitated for a few second before whispering: "or a boyfriend." While keeping his eyes fixed on his essay.

"Or a boyfriend." Talia confirmed after a short pause.

_… … … …_

"So… Stiles? I had no idea you were a cradle robber." Peter said the next moment they were alone together, which turned out to be a few days later when Peter came to get him after school, with a smug smile Derek wanted to smash.

"I'm not a cradle robber."

"He's currently 9, I could have said a lot worse."

"Shut up! He doesn't even know I exist… and he won't until he's old enough."

"I'm not sure if this romantic or creepy."

Peter waited a little, thinking his nephew would start talking without any prompt. Obviously he was wrong, he had no choice but to ask.

"So… what's the story?"

Derek thought about keeping quiet until he realized that Peter was the only person he could talk to about Stiles… and he missed saying his name. He missed everything about him.

"When Stiles was 16, his best friend got bit by a rogue alpha. I… I try to help them."

"A rogue Alpha? In Beacon Hills?"

"It's a long story, one that hopefully won't repeat itself... Anyway, at first he didn't like me and he was kind of annoying but… we went through a lot. Then after he turned 18 he asked me out and I said yes. We went on a few dates, everything was going great… and I got send back in time. The end."

"That's it?" To say Peter sounded disappointed would put it mildly.

"What do you mean "That's it?"? What else did you expect?"

"I don't know! Some kind of scandalous story about a werewolf and his jailbait? Some Romeo & Juliet action? You're willing to wait 24 years for a guy you just went on a few dates with?!"

"Yes."

Peter let out a frustrated sigh.

"And why are you not at least befriending him now? Obviously you already went from friends to… whatever you were before. Surely you could try that again?"

"No I can't." Derek looked through the window. They were almost back to the house. His uncle waited, obviously wanting Derek to explain why. "His mom… she's going to die in a few years."

"So? Derek you can't save everyone but maybe you could at least be there for him when it happens right?"

"No you don't get it! If we're already friends when she gets sick… What happens when I tell him about werewolves? What happens when he finds out I could have tried to save her but didn't?"

"Is it something the bite could cure?"

"No… at least not completely. It could stop her from dying but her brain would still deteriorate…"

"Then he won't blame y-"

"You don't know that. I can't wait 24 years to truly be with him just to lose him like that… Besides, it's already hard enough to wait when I don't see him a lot, I'm not sure I could take it if we were friends…"

_… … … …_

Derek and Peter found the whole family gathered in the living room when they reached the house. Even Laura was back from UCLA. Talia asked them to sit down before standing in front of her pack.

"In the next few days, some other packs will come to Beacon Hills. I don't want any of you to interact with them. If you see any other wolf in town, you do not approach them. I will take care of the summit, Laura will be my second for the occasion and the rest of you will stay out of it. Have I made myself clear?"

* * *

**What did you think? Do you think Derek is right to stay away from Stiles? Can you guess what happens next? Should Derek try to change things?**


	14. Chapter 13

Notes: Hey! I know it's been a while and I'm sorry! I started classes at University and it's a lot more time consuming than I thought it would be ^^ Anyway, thank you all so much for the comments! Enjoy :)

* * *

Chapter 13

Derek stared at nothing in particular, the sound of Ave Maria playing in the background. Ever since Talia told them about the other packs coming, his mind has been plagued with memories of Paige dying in his arms. He knew he should focus on the summit and find a way to prevent Gerard's betrayal of Deucalion, but he only knew the little Peter had found out back then and it wasn't much. When he did thought about it, he always ended with the same conclusion: he couldn't do it on his own. His line of thoughts was taking back to Paige's tragic death for the fourth time that day when the music stopped suddenly.

"Could you please stop thinking so loudly? You're distracting me!" Paige said.

"I thought you had a laser-sharp focus?"

"Don't try to change the subject. What's going on? You've been like this for 2 days!"

"Nothing." _Nothing I can talk to you about anyway._

_… … … …_

"We need to talk."

"… Hello to you to dear nephew, I'm fine thanks for asking."

Derek had gone straight to Peter's room after school, he knew he couldn't wait anymore, especially since he had no idea when Gerard would act… or even when he'd come to Beacon Hills, since the Argents were not part of the local hunters they had a packed with.

"It's important Peter, please."

"Fine, but no lame movie this time, I don't think I can take anymore witless action hero winning over a blond bimbo with useless explosions…"

"Fine, we'll go to the park or something."

"And it better be important!"

_… … 20 Minutes later … …_

"Fuck."

"And that's all the information I got! I don't know why the Argents came, why one off Ennis' beta killed one off them… And I can't remember when exactly it all happened! Even the events I was part off…"

"But… do you really have to stop it?"

"Of course I have to! People are going to die Peter… And not just because off Gerard, if Deucalion becomes … whatever he was when I met him, dozens of people will die."

"Well, if you want to do something about it I can only see one way…"

"I was hoping I'd never have to do this…"

_… … … …_

The very next day, the Argents arrived in town. The local hunters where not very happy about it but they decided not to do anything, the Argents were royalty after all. The bad news was that Derek was too late to stop Ennis' beta from killing one of them, apparently it happened before the pack arrived for the summit, a few towns over Beacon Hills. This time though, the beta was caught and killed without Derek and Peter being chased down in the forest and trapped in the root cellar. Derek could feel the tension between the packs and the Argents all over town, he felt on edge all the time, as if his wolf knew something bad was going to happen.

_… … … …_

The abandoned distillery was bathing in sunlight. Deucalion and a few of his betas faced Gerard and his hunters. They all appeared unarmed but the look in Gerard's eyes was anything but friendly. The older man was walking in circles in front of the alpha.

"I think it's quite fitting that we are meeting in a distillery. You know, the process of distillation is the separating of two substances by pushing them into their different volatile states."

"Volatile is exactly the state I was hoping to avoid." Answered Deucalion, keeping his voice as neutral as possible.

"Ooh." Gerard walked towards a red valve. "Then this is going to come as quite a big disappointment!" He said dramatically before turning the valve rapidly. The werewolves took a few steps back and took a defensive pose… but nothing happened. Gerard looked around at the pipes with crazy eyes, he was about to yell something at his men when the cracks of weapons being loaded sounded all-around them. At first the werewolf thought it was other Argents pointing guns at them but seconds later, a dozen men entered the distillery with their weapons pointed at Gerard and his men.

"What is the meaning of this?" Asked Gerard. One of the armed men stepped forward.

"Beacon Hills is our territory Sir, and I don't care what your last name is, here, everyone goes by the code."

_… … … …_

Deaton was cleaning up a bit in the clinic, Talia and Deucalion having just left after finishing the debrief on the failed meeting with the Argents.

"Everything went well in the end." He said to what appeared to be an empty room. "You know, you could have told me sooner about your… well, your past." Derek kept to the shadows, refusing to talk anymore that he already had to. He did his job, no one else died and, with some luck, the alpha pack will never exist. But he knew he'd need Deaton's help again, and soon. After all, now that the Argents were seriously pissed off, Kate would probably get here in no time.

* * *

Notes: Short chapter I know, I wanted to keep a bit of mystery about Derek's plan, how did I do? Did you like it? Are you ready for the Kate chapter? Do you want something in particular to happen? (yes, I'm fishing for comments, sue me :p)


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